Why do some experiences “stick” in our brains and some experiences just slip away! The more connections we make between the material we’re trying to remember, the easier it will be to recall it when we need it – during a test for example.
One of the strongest connections we can use is to make the information more meaningful in some way. Introducing emotion into a dry subject forces the brain to think the information you’re trying to remember is important.
So…how do we get more emotion into the situation when we’re trying to memorize lots of dry material? Well, we find creative ways to make the information interesting, unique, scary, funny, gross, urgent, impossible, competitive, cute, outrageous, dynamic (involve changes in shape, size or position) – you get the idea. This turns on the brain!
No matter whether the things we think about are funny and pleasant or scary and gross, neuro chemicals in the brain are pressing the “save” key for your memories.
The bottom line is this: find creative ways to make the information you want to remember *pop* using the techniques in this article.
See the techniques from the ADDA here
